Submarine boat



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

- G. W. BENNUM.

SUBMARINE BOAT.

Patented May 17,1898.

I! five/ 2571' Wilf- (No Model.) Q 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. G. W. BENNUM.

SUBMARINE BOAT. No. 604,185. Patented May 17,1898.

(No Model.) 3 SheetsSheet 3.

G. W. BENNUM. SUBMARINE BOAT.

Patented Ma PATENT 1P EFICE.

GEORGE W. BENNUM, OF GEORGETOWN, DELAWARE.

SUBMARINEBOAT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 604,185., dated May 17 1898.

Application filed June 18,1897. Serial No. 641,319. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

' Be it known that I, GEORGE W. BENNUM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Georgetown, in the county of Sussex and State of Delaware, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Submarine Boats, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a new and useful improvement in submarine boats, and has for its object to so construct a boat of this description as to permit its being propelled beneath the surface of the water without permitting to the surface of the water aperceptible disturbance which would indicate the presence of the boat, and also to provide means for the lowering or raising of the boat relative to the surface of the water in at least three distinct ways to preclude the possibility of serious accidents; and a further object of my invention is to provide means for a person gaining access to the outside of the boat while remaining within a rubber suit, so that torpedoes may be placed beneath large vessels for their destruction, and a secondary object of my invention is the adaptation -thereof to a toy submarine boat.

\Vith these ends in view this invention consists in the details of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth and then specifically designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains may understand how to make and use the same, its construction and operation will now be described in detail,referring to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a boat built in accordance with my improvement, showing its position beneath the water; Fig. 2, a horizontal longitudinal section just above the connecting-rods, showing the operation of the cars, the rest of the machinery being omitted; Fig. 3, a detail view of one of the fin-propellers in position to move rearward against the water; Fig. 4, a similar view of the propeller H when lying edgewise to the water and moving forward; Fig. 5, a section at the line a: a: of Fig. 4; Fig. 6, a side elevation of a slight modification of my improvement, showing a small section of the boat upon which it is secured; Fig. '7, a similar view showing the blade turned edgewise to thewater; Fig. 8, a section at the line y y of Fig. 6; Fig. 9, a central longitudinal section of a toyboat utilizing my improvement, and Fig. 10 a horizontal longitudinal section thereof.

In carrying out my invention, as shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, I construct a boat A of the general outline of a fish, being so closed as to be water and air tight, and within suitable pockets in the sides of the boat are journaled the shafts B, to which are secured the shanks O, the latter having pivoted thereto fin propeller-blades D. The surface of these blades projects downward below the axle of their pivot-points in order that when the blades are moved forward in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 4 they will assume a horiwater will ofier but little resistance thereto when being returned, but upon the beginning of the rearward movement of the fins they will swing downward to a vertical position, as shown in Fig. 3, and thereafter exert their full pressure upon the water for the forcing of the boat forward. The blades are prevented from turning from their normal position when moved in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3 by the lug E coming in contact with the stop F, so that to propel the boat it is only necessary to move the shanks back and forth, when the fill-blades will assume the proper positions relative to the water to effect the forward movement of the boat.

Crank-arms G are secured to the shafts B both at their upper and lower ends, and with these arms are pivoted the pitmen H, which latter are connected to the crank I, and this crank is given a rotary movement by any suitable mechanism, here shown as a dynamo, (indicated at .I,) whose power is transmitted to the crank through a pair of bevel-gears. The dynamo preferably receives its energy from a storage battery located at K. The interior of the boat is divided into an upper and lower compartment, the upper compartment being utilized for the machinery and occupants of the boat,- while the lower compartment is subdivided, the central sec" tion L of which serves as an air-reservoir, while the two end sections M serve for the admission of water tocause the boat to sink when desired, and these last-named sections are provided with the valves N, the stems of which pass into easy reach of the occupants of the upper compartment, so that the inflow of water to these sections may be regulated or stopped.-

0 represents a pump for forcing water from the sections M, while P is an air-pump for forcing compressed air to the section L, and these pumps may be run by a suitable dynamo Q, receiving its energy from the storage battery or any other suitable power source. By this arrangement a boat properly con structed and Weighted may be lowered beheath the surface of the water or brought thereto by the admission of the proper amount of water to the sections M or the forcing therefrom of this water by the pump, the place of the water being taken by air led from the sec tion L; also, the air-pump may be utilized for removing the foul air from the upper com pa'rtment, when a certain amount of the compressed an contained within the section L maybe liberated within the upper compartment for the replacing of the air pumped therefrom.

. As a further safety against accident, and in order that the boat may be brought to the surface with great rapidity at any time, even though all the apparatus contained therein should fail to work, the secondary keel R is secured to the underside of the boat by the screw-rods S, which latter pass toward the uppercompartment in easy access of the occupants thereof, from which it will be obvious that by unscrewing these rods the keel will be free and permitted to drop from the boat, thus so reducing the weight thereof as to permit it to quickly rise to the surface of the water.

In the operations of the boat it is essenti'al that its upward or downward course may be altered and to a degree its depth maintained by its forward motion, which is readily accomplished by the blades T, secured upon the outer ends of the shafts U, in such manner that when the shaft is turned upon its 'aXis these blades will be presented to the water at various angles, and the shaft may be so turned by the lever V, which is secured thereto, and when turned may be locked in any adjustment by the segment W. Thus it will be seen that when the boat is moving forward and it is desired also to causeit to move gradually downward the blades T are set so that the upper surface thereof offers a glancing resistance to the water, thereby forcing the boat gradually downward in proportion to its forward speed, and when it is desired to move the boat upward, the blades are set at a reverse angle, or any given depth is to be maintained, the blades are brought to the horizontal. Likewise a blade T may be pivoted at the bow of the boat, as clearly shown, and placed under the control of an operator within the boat by means of the lever V',-secured to the spindle to which the blade is secured, said lever working in conjunction with the segment W, as will be readily understood. By this arrangement the boat may be weighted by the admission of water until all but the upper portion thereof is beneath the water, after which its forward motion may be utilized by the proper setting of the blades T and T to cause it to descend while it progresses until the proper depth is reached, so that should the machinery become disarra uged or from any cause cease to operate the boat will of its own buoyancy rise tothe top of the water, thus saving the lives of the occupants by bringing them to the surface, where they may secure air for :breathing purposes. blades T and the blade T are used, better control will be had over the up and down movements of the boat since the latter may T be maintained in its level position while sink- When the two sets of ing or rising, which position might be disturbed were only a single pair of blades used; but I do not wish to limit myself to any number of blades for deflecting the horizontal eourse of the boat since one pair may be found sufficient, whereas, if desired, a greater number may be used.

Xrepresents the dome, which is mounted upon the top of the boat and has means for gaining access thereto, and in this dome is located a steering apparatus, and it is also provided with observation-holes covered with glass, so that the pilot may be in a position to determine the course of the boat. From the dome rearward runs the steering-rods Y, which are attached to the rudder Z, and while these rods are here shown as lying upon the outside of the boat it is obvious that they might be passed to the interior thereof.

One of the principal uses for a boat of this construction is the placing of torpedoes beneath large vessels or any other desirable localities for the destruction of such vessels, and I therefore provide a rack a upon the bow of the boat for holding the torpedo b and provide an opening just in the rear of this rack over which is placed a waterproof suit d, and this suit is provided with a helmet arranged so that a person in the interior of the suit may have free observation of his surroundings, and it is also preferable to have the gloves of the suit provided with fingers in order that the personmay be free to handle the torpedoes. Now when a torpedo is to be attached to the under side of a large vessel the submarine boat is guided to the vessel at a sufficient depth beneath the water to prevent detection,and when the large vessel is reached a person passes into the suit and attaches the torpedo to the under side of the vessel, when rods 0'.

the submarine boat is moved away to a safe distance, at the same time reeling out an electric wire which has previously been attached to the torpedo, after which the torpedo may be exploded forthe destruction of the large vessel, thus leaving the occupants of the submarine boat safe from injury.

If found desirable, a torpedo-gun'may be provided for the projection of torpedoes or shells either above or below the water, thereby better fitting the boat for attacking floats or war-ships.

The modification shown in Figs. 6, 7, and 8 consists of positive means of giving to the propeller-fins an initial downward movement,

so as to prevent them from moving backward without taking effect upon the water, and consists of a ratchet-wheel e, fitted above the shafts f, so as to revolve in one direction, but prevented from moving in the opposite direction by the pawl g, and upon the upper face of this ratchet are gear-teeth h, with which the teeth i mesh when the blade is in a horizontal position, but which pass out of mesh with said teeth when the blade is turned to a vertical. The operation of this construction is that when the blade is brought to the horizontal by the action of the water thereon the teeth 11 mesh with the teeth h and force the ratchet to revolve; but when the rearward movement of the blade commences the reverse movement of the ratchet is prevented by its pawl, thereby causing the blade to rotate upon its axis by the meshing of the gears, thus giving it its initial movement toward the vertical, after which the water will so act thereon as to bring it to the vertical and permit it to exert its full force in propelling the body forward; but for most purposes the first described construction will answer the purpose for which it is intended and is somewhat less complicated.

In Figs. 9 and 10 I have shown my improvement embodied in a toy boat in which the finblade propellers m are operated by a clock mechanism at, which is provided with a crank 19, which is connected to the blades by the This boat is also divided into two compartments, the lower compartment i having a pipe a lying therein, which is provided with a cap in order that water may be interposed within the lower compartment for the submerging of the boat to the desired depth.

When myimprovement is to be used in connection with large ocean or other vessels, a series of the fin-propellers may be arranged along the sides of such a boat and at such a depth beneath the surface of the water as to preclude the possibility of the propellers racing by the rolling of the vessel, and it is also obvious that one or more screw-propellers may be arranged in the stern of the vessel in the usual manner, and by this combination an exceedingly powerful and swift means of propelling the vessel will be provided. An advantage of my improvement in connection with such a vessel is that when the fin-propellers are not desired for use they may be swung close to the side of the vessel and will offer little or no resistance to the forward progression thereof while the screw-propellers are being used. a

While I have shown the air-tank forming a subdivision of the lower compartment of the boat, it is obvious that this tank may be located in any convenient position within the boat or that there might be several such tanks, and when this tank is located otherwise than in the lower compartment said compartment will be utilized throughout its length as a water-compartment.

Instead of utilizing a rack upon the bow of the boat forthe holding of the torpedoes the same result may be accomplished by providing a compartment in the upper portion of the bow of the boat, said compartment having trap -doors leading thereto which may be opened and closed by the person manipulating the torpedo from the outside of the boat,

and this arrangement would have some advantages in that the torpedo would not be liable to be washed away or in any manner impede the forward motion of the boat.

In connection with the toy boat it of course will be understood that said boat may not be constructed for submerging, as my improved fin-propellers will operate in connection therewith equally as well when the boat is arranged for floating upon the water.

Other modifications might be made in my improvement without departing from the spirit of my invention, and 1 therefore do not wish to limit myself to the exact construction here shown and described.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and useful is- 1. In a submarine boat, pockets formed in the sides thereof, shafts journaled vertically in the pockets and projecting to the interior of the boat, shanks on the shafts, fins pivoted to the shanks to swing vertically,a crankshaft journaled in the boat, pitmen extending from the inner ends of the first-named shafts to the crank-shaft, and means for driving the crank shaft, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a submarine boat, a shaft jonrnaled across the bow of the boat and extending to the exterior, at its ends, a blade secured to the ends of the shaft, a lever secured to the interior portion of the shaft, a segment having holes therethrough and a pin adapted to be passed through a hole in the lever into a hole in the segment, substantially as set forth.

3. In a submarine boat, pockets formed in the sides thereof, shafts journaled vertically therein, shanks secured on the shafts, fin

' propeller-blades hinged to the shanks to swing vertically, stops on the shanks and lugs on the propellers adapted to come in contact with the stops, as and for the purpose set forth.

4, Propelling mechanism consisting of ver- IEO tioal shafts, ratchet wheels on the shafts, In testimony whereof I have hereunto afpawls to engage the ratchet-wheels, gear-teeth fixed my signature in the presence of two subon the upper face of the ratchet-Whee1s,shanks scribing Witnesses.

on the shafts, propeller-blades journaled GEORGE W. BENNUM. 5 thereon, gear-teeth on the propeller-blades Witnesses:

meshing with the first-mentioned gear-teeth, S. S. WILLIAMSON,

substantially as set forth. JOHN W. MEssIoK. 

